Warren Buffett has long warned that poor communication around estate planning can create confusion, resentment and lasting damage inside families. Speaking at a Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting, Buffett said one of the biggest mistakes parents can make is keeping their will secret until after they die. If children see the document for the first time only after a parent is gone, they may also be discovering for the first time how that parent viewed fairness, money and family responsibilities. That can create shock and conflict at the exact moment when there is no longer an opportunity to explain the reasoning behind those decisions. Buffett takes a different approach. He has said he does not finalize his estate plans until his children have had the opportunity to read them, understand them and provide feedback. He also emphasized that timing matters. Those conversations are more useful when children are mature enough to process the decisions thoughtfully rather than reacting emotionally. The issue goes beyond the wording of a will. Families can pass down wealth, businesses and investments without preparing the next generation to manage them, creating another source of conflict when heirs have different expectations or levels of experience. For Buffett, the goal is not simply transferring assets. It is preserving relationships. Poorly handled estates can divide siblings quickly and sometimes lead to years of legal disputes. Buffett has spent decades building one of the world’s largest fortunes through Berkshire Hathaway ($BRK.B), but his estate-planning philosophy centers on something harder to measure: making sure money does not destroy the family relationships left behind.